By Kelsey Mowatt

It’s been a long eight plus months in the life of Bobby Voelker, but finally, the veteran has a new opponent he can prepare for following his stoppage win over Roger Bowling last July. Recently, Strikeforce announced that the 32 year-old welterweight contender will take on the rising 22 year-old Nah-Shon Burrell, at the promotion’s upcoming May 19th card in San Jose.

“Just excitement, hungry; I’m ready to get back in there,” Voelker said, when asked to recall his reaction upon finding out he would indeed fight at the event. “I’ve been ready to get back in there for a while now and I’m just glad that I finally get my chance again.”

Due to Strikeforce’s reduced schedule for 2012, if Voelker had not been scheduled for the May 19th card, a year or more might have gone by without having the surging Kansas City fighter compete.

“Actually I was discouraged and really concerned about that,” said Voelker (24-8). “I started to think I wasn’t going to get thrown on the May 19th card just because I heard of all these other big names that are going to be on it. I thought ‘oh man, I’m going to get passed up again,’ but my manager pulled it off and the guys at Strikeforce thought ‘it’s Bobby’s turn’. We got to get him in there.”

“All it tells me is that I have to perform even better,” Voelker added, while discussing the fact that there could be less opportunities for Strikeforce fighters to compete this year. “I need to show that I belong and that I deserve to be put on these big cards because I put on great shows. It just pushes me to become better.”

While Voelker has been working his way up the promotion’s welterweight ranks by going 4-1 in Strikeforce action, Burrell has also been attracting attention since he signed with the organization, by earning three straight wins.

“It’s great,” Voelker noted about the match-up. “He’s wanting to make a career as he’s a young guy; he’s only 22 years old. He’s trying to make a name off someone like me who’s had a bunch of fights. I’m not going to allow it. He’s up-and-coming and I’m sure someday he will be great, it’s just not going to be this fight. I plan on stopping him.”

Since arriving in Strikeforce last year, Burrell has scored wins over Joey Ray, Lukasz Les and most recently James Terry, who he defeated by split decision in January.

“I watch him and he’s a great athlete,” Voelker said about his next opponent. “He’s a great kicker, great puncher all that, and he looks slick and he belongs where he’s at.”

Despite his praise for Burrell’s athleticism and abilities, Voelker is confident that the skills which allowed him to record stoppage wins over aggressive fighters like Erik Apple and Bowling, will win out once again.

“I welcome it,” Voelker told FCF. “I never know how a fight’s going to go, I just know how it’s going to end and that’s with my hand raised. But if it looks like he wants to stand we’re going to stand, we could go hard and wind up in the clinch, or we could go hard and up on the ground; wherever it ends up I’m happy.

“But I’d love to keep it standing, keep it banged out. That’s of course always my style. I’m ready to take it wherever it needs to be.”